Mail-handling device for railway mail-service.



No. 854,705. PATENTED MAY 21, 1907.

0. F. ROBINSON. MAIL HANDLING'DEVIGE FOR-RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 30, 1906.

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CHARLES F. ROBINSON, OF

MONTPELIER, VERMONT.

MAIL-HANDLING DEVICE FOR RAILWAY NIAIL-SERVECE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 21, 1907.-

Application filed July 30,1906. Serial No. 328.312.

T0 ctZZ'whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES F. ROBIN- soN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Montpelier, in the county of Vvashington, State of Vermont, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Mail-Handling Devices for Railway Mail-Service, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

The invention relates to catching and del'vering devices for railway-mail service, and consists in a novel and improved construction by means of which the catcher, or deliverer, or combined catcher and deliverer, is rendered reversible to suit the direction of travel of a car in connection with which the transfer of a mail bag or other receptacle or package is desired to be made. Also, in an improved construction by which obstruction of the opening of the doorway below the shaft of the device aforesaid is avoided.

The invention is illustrated in'the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 shows in perspective an embodiment of the invention in connection with a combined catcher and deliverer. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the device of Fig. 1 with the movable parts in a horizontal position, and with the opposite sides of a car doorway in horizontal section. Fig. 3 is a view in side elevation of the carrier-block,

Having reference to the drawings,at 1 is a supporting shaft, and at 2, 2, are bearings in which the opposite extremities of the said shaft are journaled, the said bearings being provided in connection with stands 3, 3, which in practice are suitably supported, as for instance by being attached, respectively, to the opposite sides, of the doorway of a car, although I contemplate also, in some instances, the attachment of the said stands to a fixed structure alongside the track on which the car moves. At 4 is a carrier-block which is applied to the said shaft, it having a transversely-extending socket or sleeve, 4 1 through which the shaft 4 extends. The carrierblock is capable of sliding upon the shaft 1 in the direction of the length of the latter, from a position at one side of the doorway in which one end of the transverse socket or sleeve 41 makes contact with a buffer 11 alongside one of the bearings 2, to a position at the opposite side in which the other end of the said socket or sleeve makes contact with the buffer 11 alongside the bearing 2 at such side.

i in a direction at right angles to the socket or sleeve 41, and having the passage therethrough in a different transverse plane from that in which the passage through the socket or sleeve 41 is located. The shaft 5 of a com- .bined catching and delivering arm? extends through the passage of the second socket or sleeve, 42, and consequently stands at right angles to the shaft 1 in a plane adjacent that of the latter shaft. At 51 is the catching incline of the said arm, at 52 the retaining bend in which the bag or the like is received, at 53 the extension for supporting the bag which is to be delivered, at 54 a Spring-retainer which is applied to the said extension, and at 55 is indicated in dotted lines a suspensory ring which in practice is employed in connection with the bag (not shown) or the like to be delivered.

At 56 is a crank-arm which is fastened to the end of the shaft 4 opposite that having the catching and delivering portions of the arm, the said crank-arm being disposed in the same plane with the said portions of the arm but being the axis of shaft 5 with respect to the forwardly-extending part of such portions.

At 6 is a weighted handle extending from the crank-arm 56, the said handle being intended to facilitate the manipulation of the device and its weight acting in opposition to that of the catching and delivering arm and of the bag held by such arm in readiness for being delivered.

One end of the socket or sleeve 42 is notched or slotted transversely at 43, as shown best in Fig. 3, to receive the transversely-bent or cranked portion of the arm which forms the inner side of the retaining bend 52. When the said portion of the arm occupies the space between the upper and lower walls of theslot or notch the arm is locked thereby from accidentally turning. As will be apparent, the arm may occupy either the position in which it shown in the drawings or the diametrically opposite position. For the purpose of permitting con venient adjustment of the arm from one position to the other thereof, the shaft 5 has somewhat greater length than the socket or sleeve 42, which enables the said shaft to be slid lengthwise through the said socket or sleeve until the transversely-bent or cranked portion aforesaid has been carried out of the located at the opposite side of slot or notch. The arm may then be turned over into the opposite position, and then the shaft 5 may be drawn lengthwise in the opposite direction through the socket or sleeve 42 until the said transversely-bent or cranked portion of the arm is again seated Within the slot or notch. Thereby the arm will be locked in the said opposite position. To prevent the shaft from accidental movement in the direction of its length within the passage of the socket or sleeve 42 after the arm has been locked in the manner stated, a hole is bored through the shaft 5 at a point just beyond the forward end of the socket or sleeve 42, and a removable locking-pin 7 is placed in the said hole. This pin engages with the adjacent end of socket or sleeve 42 and thereby limits the endwise play of the arm.

The handle 6 is attached to crank-arm 56 at one side of the line of shaft 5 of the combined catcher and delivery-arm. Thereby it is caused to occupy a position considerably nearer the adjacent side of the doorway than the said shaft 5. This enables the.handle to be located quite close to the proximate side of the doorway, in whichever working position the arm may be placed, and thereby the middle portion of the space of the doorway below the shaft 1 is left unobstructed.

Each stand 3 is provided with a projection 31 extending toward the middle of the doorway. When the carrier-block is at either side of the doorway, the crank-arm 56 extends under the corresponding projection.

The weight of a bag hung to the portion 53 of the arm for purposes of delivery will tend to turn the arm or carrier-block around shaft 1, and press the crank-arm upwardly against the under side of projection 31. Said projection, therefore, acts as a stop which causes the arm to occupy a horizontal position so long as the bag is carried by the said portion 53. As soon, however, as the bag is delivered from the said portion the arm will swing under the influence of the weighted handle so as to carry the working portion of the arm upward. Should in the meantime a bag have been caught in the receiving or catching bend 52, which is considerably nearer the shaft 1 than portion 53, it will be carried upwardly by the swinging movement of the arm, and pressed thereby against the adjacent side of the car. Thereby the bag just caught will be held until it is removed by the mail-clerk. I

What I claim is 1. In a mail-handling device, or the like, the combination with the supporting shaft, of the carrier-block having sockets or sleeves extending at an angle to each other, the said supporting shaft occupying one of said sockets or sleeves and the carrier-block having upper and lower detents in connection with one end of the other socket or sleeve, and the reversible arm provided with the shaft fitting the latter socket or sleeve and having the laterally extending portion which enters between said upper and lower detents and thereby locks the arm in its different positions of adjustment.

2. In a mail-handling device, or the like, the combination with the supporting shaft, of the carrier-block having sockets or sleeves extending at an angle to each other, the said supporting shaft occupying one of said sockets or sleeves and the carrier-block having upper and lower detents in connection with the other socket or sleeve, and the reversible arm provided with the shaft fitting the latter socket or sleeve and having a laterally extending portion which engages with said upper and lower detents and thereby locks the arm in its different positions of adjustment.

3. In a mail-handling device, or the like, the combination with the supporting shaft, of the carrier-block having sockets or sleeves extending at an angle to each other in different planes, the said supporting shaft passing through one of the said sockets or sleeves and the carrier-block having a transverse notch or slot at one end of the other socket or sleeve, and the reversible arm provided with the shaft fitting the latter socket or sleeve and having a laterally extending portion which enters said notch or slot and thereby locks the arm in its different positions of ad- 4 justment.

4. In a mail-handling device, or the like, the combination with the shaft 1, of a carrier-block free to turn and slide thereon, and a reversible arm provided with a shaft journaled in said carrier-block and provided with a crank-arm carrying a weighted handle located eccentrically with relation to the said shaft, whereby said weighted handle is adapted to occupy a position at the side of the doorway, leaving the middle space of the latter clear.

5. In a mail-handling device or the like, in combination, the shaft 1, the carrier-block free to turn and slide thereon, a reversible combined catcher and deliverer journaled in said carrier-block, and also provided with the cranked arm carrying the weighted handle located eccentrically with relation to the shaft of said catcher and deliverer, and stops or detents adjacent the opposite ends of said shaft 1 adapted to be engaged by the said cranked arm and arranged to limit the turning movement of the catcher and deliverer under the weight of a bag to be delivered.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES F. ROBINSON.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. SENTER, G. H. SENTER. 

